I finally did it! I wore my first 100sareepact saree today!
I was traipsing off to a dear old friend’s place for a ‘cottons’ exhibition. Added to that, was the fact that this dear old friend had been none other than Chimmy Nanjappa, a storehouse of information on Indian weaves and their revival. Everything I know about sarees, I owe to her.
This was a Kanchi cotton I’d bought from her many summers ago, on a lazy replete-with-textures-motifs-and-colours afternoon. I always swooned at the sight of those breathtaking 6-yard beauties she surrounded herself with and so effortlessly and graciously carried off herself. What made the purchases more special were all the stories behind every masterpiece that she shared with me.
After her passing on a few years ago, I have not been able to bring myself to go to her home… till today.
And today, I’d chosen to wear it to an event hosted by her daughter and her children, who are carrying on her fabulous work. Perhaps she had a big part to play in my choice. What a warm welcome awaited me. All of them recalled me instantly and literally embraced me. I felt I had come home.
I’m not particularly religious, but I’d like to believe that as I stepped out of my home and into hers, she was watching over us and smiling down. Thank you Aunty Chimmy!